All Tied Up (quid pro quo series)
by shawishot
Summary: Shaw is tied up by enemy agents and Root comes to her rescue... or does she? The events afterwards all build up to Shaw looking at Root in a different light. Really pretty much pure smut and mildly N/C.
1. Chapter 1

Sameen Shaw sighed. Being tied up was never fun. Tied up by nefarious agents up to who know what, that was. Tied up for shits and giggles… well, she wouldn't say that wasn't fun. Damn Root and her God machine for getting her into this.

"Where are the people you work for?"

"Go fuck yourself"

The man interrogating her didn't have much patience, thought Shaw ruefully as she slid her tongue across her aching jaw to make sure nothing was broken. The man reared back to hit her again when his face froze and he fell to the floor, blood spreading across his chest.

"Took you long enough" remarked Shaw.

Out of the shadows slipped Root, with that damn smirk on her mouth.

"Miss me, Shaw?"

Shaw did her customary eye roll and grimaced. She really was in a bit of pain. That asshole could have pulled his punches a bit, but it wasn't the worse she'd ever had.

"Get me out of here, Root."

"Why, Sameen… I seem to have you at a disadvantage. Too bad I didn't bring my Taser this time."

Root leaned close to Shaw's face, and all Shaw could see was that smirk which made her blood boil. "Root…" came out menacingly.

"I do think you need a bit of time to calm down before you're let loose" came from behind Shaw when Root walked, no, _whirled_ past her.

The majority of the lights went out and Shaw snapped, "Root! What are you playing at?"

"Didn't you know that being in a dark environment is very calming?" purred Root's voice close to her ear, starling Shaw somewhat. "Stop it, Root".

"You wouldn't know what was good for you if it bit you on the ass", the voice breathed in her ear. Teeth then snagged Shaw's ear in a nip.

This was too much. Root was taking things too far. "Goddammit, Root!"

"Oh, did that hurt big bad Shaw? I'm so sorry" breathy laughter drifted into her ear.

Shaw's hands tensed against the zipties, but they were too tight to break out of without some kind of object. She'd kill Root for this. Flirting was one thing, but this? This was going too far.

Shaw felt her ponytail being lifted and once she felt the sensation of lips touching… no, moving along her neck, her nipples instantly hardened. For one moment, Shaw was glad of the low light so Root wouldn't notice immediately. This was unacceptable. Fucking unacceptable. Fucking Root… always trying to get under her skin.

The lips moved to the side of Shaw's neck, the hollowed out place where Root could feel Shaw's pulse beating rapidly. Shaw knew this and hated it, hated that Root could tell Shaw was feeling something. Shaw knew she could headbutt Root and get her the fuck off her neck but… she didn't. Fluttering deep down in her belly was starting and what the fuck?

The lips rested on Shaw's increasingly rapid pulse in the hollow of her neck and Shaw felt Root open her mouth and scrape her teeth down her neck. God. Fuck. The warmth in her belly spread and her nipples started tingling.

Hands came around and lightly touched Shaw's arms. She tensed, not believing Root would actually touch her. Those hands drifted up and down, causing goosebumps to rise up and hardened Shaw's nipples even more.

"Root… stop it" rasped Shaw.

Shaw could hear the smile in Root's voice when she said "But, Sameen… your body is saying differently. Are you lying?"

Shaw shut her eyes when Root's hands wandered dangerously close to her chest, barely touching the soft undersides of her breasts.

"Not wearing your usual sports bra today, Sameen? This bra shows your shape so much better", breathed Root. Shaw could hear a slight change in Root's voice and knew Root was starting to feel affected by this… thing she was doing. This only turned Shaw on more, but she remained murderously silent.

The hands slipped under her breasts, roaming across Shaw's abdomen. Shaw watched the slender fingers move and in the low light of the remaining light, it all seemed surreal. She watched as the hands inched higher and higher towards her breasts, until they filled the hands. She let out a soft sigh as the hands caressed and squeezed as they pleased. But it wasn't until the fingers started pinching her nipples when Shaw started feeling the effects _down there_. Who woulda thought… Root getting her wet? Shaw almost smiled at the thought. Almost.

"What's with all this touching crap? If you mean business, get down to business" snarled Shaw. She didn't like feeling helpless. If she weren't ziptied, why, she'd have Root on her back so fast… no. If she weren't ziptied, she'd end Root. Of course she would.

Root started biting Shaw's neck in different places, harder and harder until she drew blood. Shaw's breath hitched as she felt the twin combination of pain and pleasure starting to take effect. "Enjoying that, are you, Sameen?"

Root's left hand continued to pinch and roll Shaw's nipple while the other hand started roaming down her body and started kneading her thigh. Shaw rolled her hips involuntarily, all the while hating herself for it. The hand wandered towards the zipper of her jeans and slowly unfastened the button holding the top part together. Shaw watched the hand deftly start to unzip her jeans and find its way inside.

"My, my… your panties are soaked" whispered Root as her finger made slow, lazy circles on the fabric that was the last barrier between her hand and Shaw's pussy. Shaw felt like all the blood in her body was rushing down to the area Root was touching and that nothing else mattered. As Root's finger moved tantalizingly close to the edges of Shaw's panties, Shaw felt a groan build up. No. She wouldn't give Root the satisfaction of hearing that and swallowed the groan. As the finger found the edge and slipped around, moving the panties to the edge, Shaw found her legs opening slightly wider. _Traitor legs,_ thought Shaw.

Hearing "that's it, Sameen… open wider for me", pissed Shaw off and she instinctively tried to squeeze her legs close. It was too late—Root's fingers had already found her slick slit and was moving up and down. Shaw knew she was lost and closed her eyes, riding the wave of pleasure that rippled up and down her. She was so close… but friction was needed. She tried bringing her hips up to rub against Root's hand and heard "No, Sameen, none of that… I decide when you're ready". Shaw gnashed her teeth. Root's finger then finally slipped into her and a second one joined the first moments later, sliding in and out.

Shaw wanted, needed it faster and rougher. Her hips started rolling again and she heard "Sameen, do you want it?" Shaw pressed her lips shut, refusing to give Root the satisfaction of begging. "Okay… if that's what you want" and the motion of the fingers slowed. No… she wanted to get off and she couldn't, not with the slowing motion of Root's fingers. She ground out, "Fuck you. I want it." "How do you want it?" "Fuck you, Root. You know."

"No, Sameen, I don't. You need to say it."

"Harder, faster" gasped Shaw.

"That's a good girl" was the last thing Shaw heard before she lost herself in the pleasure that built up from the two fingers now ramming in and out of her at a furious pace. Her nipple was being roughed up by Root's incessant pinching and rolling, and Shaw could feel the end coming near. She thought she let out a tiny moan _OhmygodfuckI'mnotmoaning _and then having "God you're hot" whispered in her ear, sent her over the edge.

She opened her eyes after the waves of pleasure subsided and slid her scowl back in place. She was going to kill Root. As her fists clenched, she realized the zipties were cut and she immediately leaped out of the chair, whirling around to face Root.

Nobody was there.

Fucking Root and her dramatic entrances or exits. Bitch would get her due, thought Shaw, fastening her jeans.

Just wait you, Root.


	2. Chapter 2

Shaw lounged near Harold's computer as he was talking about a new number. _Where the fuck had Root gotten herself to?_ Shaw hadn't seen much of the hacker in the past few weeks, not since that operation where Shaw had helped by letting herself be captured and… _Don't think about that, it's a distraction._

"Ms. Shaw?"

Breaking out of her revriere, Shaw glared at Harold. Harold paled a bit before continuing "We got a new number last night while you and Mr. Reese were sleeping, and Ms. Groves took the mission. I haven't heard from her since and I'm not sure whether to be worried yet. She's also not answering her com."

_Root… it would be just like her not to check in, but she had gotten better at that lately. _

Reese, ever faithful watchdog, volunteered to check on Root. Shaw suddenly decided she was tired of this shit, tired of Root avoiding her. She wanted to confront Root. And then what? Shaw shook her head and said "No."

Reese and Finch turned to look at her and Shaw suddenly felt stupid. Why not just let Reese check on Root? But she had already said something, might as well follow through. And she couldn't pin it down, but something felt wrong. "I'll check on Root. She needs to know we're a team, and she can't just pick and choose when to check in. And I think I'm the best person to drill that into her pointy little hacker head." Shaw turned and stalked off, leaving a bemused Finch and Reese staring after her.

_Where to start?_

Shaw decided to try calling Root on her com. Root always picked up if it was Shaw calling. Always.

Silence. Root wasn't picking up. _What the fuck, Root?_

Shaw started to listen to her gut, which was telling her something was off. Root might be injured or captured, or worse. Shaw walked along 5th Avenue until she spotted a traffic cam and she stopped, facing it until a red light blinked, indicating Root's goddamn God was listening. "Where is Root? Does she need help?"

The pay phone nearby started ringing and Shaw shoved aside the teenage boy who had heard the ringing and thought he'd answer it. "Sorry, but that's mine. Stay the fuck away from stuff that isn't yours" with a glare was sufficient to make the boy feel he couldn't walk away fast enough. Shaw held the phone in her hand as the machine-y voice grated in her ear. "Explosion at 11th and Jefferson. Root in need of assistance." _I knew it._ Shaw headed off at a jog in the direction of the location she had just been given.

Shaw squirmed through the throng of people agape at the sight of the four-alarm fire at the warehouse. She hated being stuck in a crowd, the feel of being unable to escape. But she had no choice. She had to look for Root. Shaw inched closer to the fire trucks and ambulances and stood there surveying the situation, red lights flashing across her face. The fact that it was now nightfall didn't help matters any as it would make it harder for her to locate Root.

_Think, Shaw. If you were injured and didn't want to be found, where would you be?_

Shaw's eyes settled on the area left unscathed by the explosion and subsequent fire, and it contained cargo containers.

_Perfect._

Shaw slipped under the yellow Caution line and stuck to the shadows as she made her way across to the cargo containers. As dark as it was, it would be hard to spot a blood trail and as Shaw's eyes darted around looking for clues, she spotted a barely open container door.

_Bingo._

Shaw took out her gun and silently slid up to the door. She peeked in, but it was absolute blackness and she didn't have a flashlight. "Root?" whispered Shaw. Hearing nothing in reply, she opened the door enough to let herself in and shuffled her feet as she moved so she wouldn't trip over anything.

"Root?" tried Shaw again, focused on listening for noises. She heard a soft grunt in the blackness and went on full alert. _Fuck. What if it was a rabid animal?_ Shaw shook her head _Listen to yourself you pussy._

As Shaw stood there in the near absolute darkness listening, she realized she could navigate by the light of her phone. _Stupid, Shaw_. She turned on the phone and the glow revealed shadows and unidentifiable lumps on the ground. She scanned the container until she spotted boots.

_Jesus, that's Root's boots._

Shaw sprinted over to where Root was lying, hoping she wouldn't find Root dead or worse. As the light from her phone illuminated Root, Shaw drew in a sharp breath. Judging from the amount of blood on her, Root was definitely injured, if not dead. Shaw knelt down and checked for a pulse. It was faint, but there. Shaw let out the breath she had been holding and assessed the situation. Root needed medical attention but a hospital was out of the question due to the questions Root's condition would raise with the medical authorities. She looked at Root's face, which she hadn't seen in such a long time and thought that Root looked strangely ethereal.

_Enough, Shaw. Root needs help. Focus._

Had Root been shot? Or hit by debris from the explosion? Shaw needed to find out where the blood was coming from so she could attempt to treat Root's injuries. Shaw unzipped Root's leather jacket and pried it open. Apparently Root was only injured in her chest and shoulder, and not her abdomen. _That's good news… abdominal wounds were the worst._

Shaw knew she couldn't treat Root in the cargo container without medical supplies and the container was fucking dirty. Best plan of action was to get Root away and treat her elsewhere. Checking her phone's GPS, Shaw saw that her place was closer than any of the safe houses dotted throughout the city.

Shit. This would be much easier if Root were conscious and able to walk.

Shaw hoisted Root onto her shoulder in a fireman carry and grunted her way out of the container. _For such a willowy looking person, she's certainly heavy as heck_ thought Shaw grumpily.

Sticking to the shadows, she made it out of the immediate vicinity and hailed a taxi to her apartment. _Threats or $50?_ She decided on the $50 which would keep the cab driver silent about Root's appearance.

Breathing heavily, she laid Root on the couch.

_Fuck. Root better not bleed all over my couch. _

In the light, Shaw could better see Root's injuries and they were a bit deeper than she thought. No wonder Root was still unconscious. Maybe it was better that way for cleaning those wounds would definitely hurt. _No.. Root deserved all the pain she got._

_Time to get sterile._ Shaw took off her filthy jacket and stripped down to her tanktop so she could breathe while attending to Root.

Root's shirt was in the way so Shaw stood up and retrieved the scissors from her knife block. Kneeling down besides Root, Shaw started cutting away her shirt. As the scissors made their way up and revealing Root's pale, milky white abdomen, Shaw couldn't help but smile at the ironical notion that instead of getting her revenge against Root, here she was trying to get Root better.

As the shirt split open, revealing Root's lacy black bra, Shaw couldn't help but stare at Root's choice of lingerie. _Fuck me, the hacker likes girly stuff. Hmm._

Shaw cut a path to the sleeve covering Root's right arm and Root lay exposed. Shaw could see the main wound was a chunk out of the space near Root's armpit. _That'll definitely leave a scar._ It didn't affect the major muscles, so Root's muscle motion would be fine eventually. Shaw noted that there was a lot of debris embedded in Root's chest, probably glass and asphalt. _Shit. Glass?_ That would need to come out as to avoid any pieces inadvertently traveling via blood vessels to Root's heart.

Basically what this was, was a fucking clean up job. Shaw scowled _Id much rather be drinking a beer_. Sighing, Shaw got up and went to get the tools necessary to sew Root back up and remove the debris from her chest.

_I did a damn fine job with those stitches_, Shaw thought. Not that Root deserved it. _Shoulda left a big-ass ugly scar instead_. Shaw moved onto the debris removal job and as she took in the situation, she realized she'd have to remove Root's bra to get to some of the debris.

Softly smirking to herself, Shaw was happy that Root hadn't woken up yet. Root would be more embarrassed if she knew she had been out while Shaw was taking a gander at her tits.

Damn. The bra clasp was in the back. Shaw slid her hands around until she found the clasp and unhooked it. Carefully sliding the bra off as not to injure Root further _(don't wake her up!),_ Shaw tossed the bra to the floor before turning around to look at Root. Her eyes slid down to Root's breasts and despite the blood around the right breast, Shaw still felt warmth blossoming down in her belly.

_Fuck. She's not even awake and she's still getting under my skin._

Shaw scowled and set around to the job of picking out the seemingly hundreds of pieces of glass stuck in and around Root's chest. She avoided the right breast area until last.

Gently grasping Root's breast in her left hand while picking and prodding at the debris with her tool, Shaw noticed Root's nipple harden. Shaw stole a glance at Root's face, and her eyes were still closed. Still out. Shaw would die if Root woke up at this very moment.

Resuming the removal process, Shaw couldn't help but notice that Root's nipple was a dusky rose. Shaw would have thought Root was more of a light pink. _Goes to show you never know what's hiding behind clothes._

The debris all removed, Shaw started cleaning up the blood with a damp rag. She rubbed with a circular motion, removing the blood streaks and her motions slowed as she started working on Root's breast. Shaw was strangely captivated by the sight of her hand slowly circling Root's breast and nipple and the motions continued long after the blood streaks had disappeared. Shaw's finger reached out and started caressing the nipple until it stood up straight, seemingly begging for more. Desire pooled into Shaw's belly and she sat back, sighing. _Im such a pervert_. A voice whispered to Shaw _Root took advantage of you after all, why shouldn't you return the favor?_

_That's different. I was awake and could have done something. Root isn't awake._

_I need a beer. No, scotch._

Shaw stood up and turned around, her destination the kitchen where she could find something to burn her throat and make her forget what she was feeling.

"Not going to finish what you started?"

Shaw stopped mid-stride, back stiff. She slowly turned around and her eyes met Root's eyes, alight with mischief. She took into the scene as if she was seeing Root for the first time. Root sprawled out on the sofa, chest rising and falling, and those damnable perky nipples enticing her. Root's mouth shaped itself into its usual smirk.

"I…"

"Now, Sameen. You don't have to say anything. It's nice to feel admired" the last word, admired, escaping as breathy laughter.

Shaw clenched her fists at her sides and ground out "Nothing happened, Root. I cleaned your wounds. It happened to be in that area. I did what I had to do."

"It's good to feel passionate about your work… Sameen."

Shaw stalked to the kitchen and retrieved her scotch, then turned around and walked to her bedroom. She scowled at Root "Be out of here in an hour" and slammed the door.

_Shit. Root didn't have a shirt. _

The door opened and Shaw threw one of her shirts at Root and the door slammed again.

Root sat there clutching Shaw's shirt with a bemused smile.

_Well, playing possum certainly worked._ It had gotten Shaw to reveal more of herself than Root thought she ever would.

This was becoming fun and Root couldn't wait to see what happened next.

Smiling to herself, Root slipped on the shirt and quietly closed the front door as she made her exit.


	3. Chapter 3

Part Three

CIA Safe House

"Miss Shaw, you have to get out of the vicinity immediately!" said Finch urgently. Shaw was crouching in an alley, waiting for the perfect moment to make her exit after she had broken into the apartment of one of the people who was chasing her current number. _Fuck_. _ That hadn't gone well. _Shaw hadn't expected to be ambushed by a six-man team which meant this was a set up. _What the fuck was the Machine playing at? It wasn't possible for the Machine to come with a corrupted number… or was it? _

Shaw snorted at the thought of even thinking that technology was impenetrable. See. She'd tell Root that her damn God could make mistakes.

_Root_. Shaw had a sudden vision of her dusky rose nipples and how they rose with her breath. _Get a grip. You need to escape and Root's tits won't help any. _Grimacing, Shaw pressed her ear-com and said "Finch. Get me out of here."

"Miss Shaw, your escape routes are rapidly closing off. Make your way up the fire escape to the roof and jump over to the third building you see on your left."

Shaw complied, jumping and clambering up the fire escape. As soon as her feet landed on the third building, she heard Finch's voice in her ear again.

"Miss Shaw, I'm afraid you will need to go to ground. Whoever's after you is smart and fast. I see a CIA safe house on the fifth floor in the building you are presently on top of. I suggest you make your way down quickly. I'm not sure if it's occupied or not, but you have no choice."

"Finch… how do we know this safe house is actually safe? It could be compromised."

"I know, Miss Shaw, but I am reasonably sure the CIA is not behind this operation, and you would only need to stay there for 10 hours as the daylight will give us other options to get you out of the area safely."

Shaw sighed and prayed that there was beer in the safe house. If not, she'd go nuts. Or sleep.

Clambering down to the fifth floor, Shaw picked the lock and stealthily opened the front door. All was dark and quiet. _So far, so good_ thought Shaw. Closing the door behind her, she did a quick recon and determined that nobody was home. She disabled the silent alarm she knew the CIA always planted in their safe houses and went straight to the fridge. Opening the door revealed a case of beer—_Sweet_!—and Shaw grabbed one.

The layout was fairly standard for a CIA safe house and in fact, looked very much like a nice hotel room with a bedroom off the living room space. Shaw sprawled out on the armchair with her beer, her leg hanging over the armrest.

_Blast… I'd much prefer 10 hours downtime at my apartment. Leastways I could cook some steak._

Sipping the beer, she was a bit startled when her ear-com beeped. "Miss Shaw…" "Finch, my idea of downtime doesn't include taking your calls willy nilly" snapped Shaw. "Forgive me, Miss Shaw, but I thought you could use some advance notice. Miss Groves is also in the area and the operatives that were after you are advancing on her. I have directed her to the safe house after she performs some esasive maneuvers as not to direct suspicion on the area."

_Shit._

"Root's coming here? That's even worse than taking your calls."

"I know how you feel about Miss Groves. That's why I'm letting you know of her arrival, which, incidentially should be within the hour and…"

Shaw hung up on Finch, swearing, and drained the bottle of beer.

_Shouldn't have complained about the downtime. That jinxed the whole night. Fuck._

Shaw closed her eyes, thinking about how she could avoid Root's knowing glances and damn innuedos. Root certainly had gotten the upper hand in their past two encounters. Shaw hated, despised feeling like a fool and that was starting to happen all too often when Root was around.

Shaw stood up and stalked over to the fridge, grabbing another beer. She leaned against the countertop, figuring out her options. _Maybe I should sneak up to the roof and stay the night there instead._

No. She was no coward. She'd face Root and probably punch her in the face. She'd avoid Root's teeth though, didn't really want to mess up that smile.

As the second beer started to do its job, Shaw relaxed a bit more. _Root always gets the upper hand. When will the tables turn? Hm. Why can't I turn the tables tonight?_ Shaw's eyes lit up. Yeah! She'd confuse the hell out of Root and see where that got her. Scenarios began to run through Shaw's mind and she started to prepare, just like if she was preparing for a mission.

Root opened the door very cautiously. The Machine had told her of this safe house just a few minutes before Finch rung in, telling her about the same place. She was told the place was unoccupied except for Shaw, and while that notion gave Root a thrill, she had to make sure Shaw wasn't compromised. She was actually surprised she saw light coming out from under the door, since she assumed Shaw would be brooding about being stuck with her for the night. Root smiled to herself, thinking it would be quite a night, and her heart started beating just a little faster in anticipation of seeing the beautiful Sameen Shaw. But down to business… making sure there wasn't anyone else except Shaw around.

As Root stuck her head in and her eyes swept the room, they settled on Shaw lounging on the armchair, beer bottle in hand. Root said "All clear?" Shaw grunted in reply and Root slipped in, closing the door behind her.

Turning around to face Shaw, Root let her smirk come out and said, "Well, Sameen, long time no see." Shaw glared at her and let out "Stay out of my way, Root, and maybe you'll make it till sunrise."

"That's no way for a doctor to treat her patient", murmured Root. "You're not my patient" growled Shaw. "Since you insist, my injuries are healing very well. You did some wonderful work on my… ah… chest", the last word coming out seductively. Shaw's glare only darkened at the reminder of their last encounter and she ground out "I mean it, Root. I don't want any interaction or you're going to end up on the floor."

"The floor? How unromantic" and Root turned away, hiding her smirk. She so loved getting under Shaw's skin. She wondered how much further she would have to go until Shaw broke. In the meantime, she needed to eat or drink something.

"Shaw… since there's no room service, anything in the fridge?"

"Go look yourself" accompanied Shaw's middle finger.

Sighing at the crude gesture, Root breezed by Shaw towards the kitchenette and as she passed, Shaw could smell Root's faint perfume. Her stomach tightened. _Focus_, Shaw told herself_. Stick to the plan_.

Root did a quick jump and sat on the kitchen counter, sipping from her beer and watching the back of Shaw's head. _9 hours to kill… without getting killed_. Root didn't want to just go close herself away into the bedroom and waste 9 hours of precious, rare Shaw time. She wished she could just command Shaw to fuck her to oblivion and beyond, but she knew that wasn't how Shaw operated. Well… maybe it was, which was a delicious thought, but it was Shaw's aversion to her that was in the way_. Interact with Shaw, maybe get her talking. How? Some kind of game that wouldn't feel threatening to Shaw? _Root considered her options and thought this approach would be the best method. If it didn't work, well, at least she could always stare at Shaw until Shaw got mad. Staring at her wasn't such a bad way to pass the time as Root loved the curves of Shaw's face, the faint pink that would rise to her cheeks every time she got angry or embarrassed, those delectable lips of hers… Root felt herself getting aroused and sighed. She wasn't getting any tonight. Might as well go ahead with trying to see if Shaw would play a game.

Root slipped from the counter and walked over, stopping behind Shaw. They breathed in silence for a moment before Shaw angrily said, "Root? Go away." "Sameen. I was thinking…." "Good. Go think somewhere else" interrupted Shaw. "Now, Sameen, let a lady finish what she's saying. Anyway, I was thinking since you don't really want to talk, maybe we could play a game?"

"You're fucking right, I don't want to talk. And I don't want to play a game either" snapped Shaw. Root sighed and said "Now, Sameen… wouldn't you rather keep busy and play with me instead of having me talk your ear off?"

"No to both". Shaw slouched even lower and fixed her eyes on the opposing wall.

"Ok, Sameen, if that's what you want. Oh, did you know that the stock market flipped a bit today? I hear the stockbrokers…" disappeared in a drone of words in Shaw's ears.

"Ok! Enough, Root! Ill play your damn game! I don't want to listen to you simpering all night!"

Root smiled "I'm so glad you saw reason, Shaw. You won't regret it."

"Just. One. Fucking. Game."

Root pouted "We have alllll night, Sameen. One game won't be enough".

Shaw opened her third bottle of beer and after taking a swallow, said "What game, Root?"

"I don't know… Twister?"

Shaw choked on her beer and said "No way in hell, Root! Your next suggestion had better be a better one or I walk"

Root smiled and thought for a bit. "If you're going to be so critical of my suggestions, why don't you suggest something?"

_She's walking right into it._

"Oh, I don't know, let's play a real game. Card game or something."

Root lifted up one eyebrow and said, "Oh… a real game? Like poker? Strip poker?" She fully expected Shaw to throw her beer bottle at her and was gobsmacked when Shaw looked at her full-on and grinned.

"In case you haven't heard, or _read_ about it in my file, I'm somewhat of a card shark. Your days, no, _clothes_ are numbered" smirked Shaw.

Root felt a slight blush coming on. Shaw had agreed to strip poker?! _My, my._ Root was deeply intrigued by this change of heart.

_This night might not be such a waste after all_, thought Root gleefully. "Let's get started then. I'm not such a slouch myself at cards, I'll have you know."

"No cheating with the Machine" snapped Shaw. "No… She doesn't even have any eyes or ears here anyway", Root retorted.

Both sat down at the table on opposing sides. As Root shuffled the cards, Shaw said "Rules, Root."

"There are rules other than just taking off an article of clothing each time you lose a hand, Sameen?"

"Yes. Winner takes everything. The winner decides between three options: putting an article of clothing back on that she may have lost in a previous round or having the loser remove an article of clothing. Additionally, if the winner won with a top three hand such as four of a kind, full house, or better, she may ask the loser to do something in particular."

Root was fascinated; she had never heard of those rules before. "My, Sameen, you're quite the expert at this, aren't you?" Shaw only smirked, slightly flabbergasting Root _as that was such a fucking sexy smirk._

Looking down at the cards she was shuffling, Root asked "What exactly do you mean by the winner asking the loser to do something in particular?" "Exactly what you think it means."

_Oh my_, thought Root_. This is going to be interesting. I didn't realize Sameen could be somewhat… fun._

Winning the high card, Shaw dealt the first round. It was pair vs pair, and Shaw had 9s compared to Root's Queens. Root smirked and remarked, "First blood, Sameen… get busy." Shaw grunted and took off her boots. "How boring, Sameen" purred Root. Shaw only shook her head and said "First things first, Root."

Within the next several rounds, which both had won and lost pretty much equally, both were down to the essentials: Shaw in her tank top and jeans, Root in her long-sleeved shirt and pants. Things were about to get going.

Root dealt the next hand and was pleased to have pocket 8s. Perfect. The river revealed another 8 and Root fought to keep her grin from showing. She was about to see a part of Sameen she had never seen. After claiming the win, Root looked at Shaw, sure that she was going to balk. Shaw stared directly at her as she stood up and slid her black jeans down her _oh so luscious_ legs. Root felt her heart pound as the sight of Shaw's boy short underwear came into view. It was so genuinely Shaw, thought Root. "I'm surprised it's white and not black" slipped out before Root realized she was saying it. Shaw smiled very slightly and said "Almost laundry day" and sat down, keeping Root's delectable view out of sight.

Root couldn't get the sight of Shaw in her tight white undies out of her mind and promptly lost the next two rounds. Sighing, she looked at Shaw as she unbuttoned her shirt. Shaw stared intently as the flesh of Root's chest came into view and slowly parted to reveal the black lacy bra Root was wearing. Root felt her heart catch as she watched Shaw's gaze fall on her bra and she didn't know what to do. Her defense mechanism kicked in as she said in a saccharine sweet voice, "Shaw… this view isn't new to you, is it", hoping to anger Shaw and get things back to normal. She didn't know how to handle this quieter—gazing—_sexy_—Shaw.

Shaw only looked at her and said "Next hand, Root."

Feeling self conscious in her bra, Root dealt and was heartened when she saw she had passable cards. Indeed winning that hand, Root felt her smile returning as she anticipated Shaw feeling as uncomfortable as Root felt. She watched Shaw slowly stand up and felt everything slow down as Shaw's hands reached for the bottom of her tank top. The top rose up oh so slowly bit by bit revealing the outline of Shaw's abs and then the curves of her breasts hidden by her… sports bra. So unsexy, sighed Root. "Well, it does the job"

Root blushed… actually blushed. She hadn't meant to say that out loud. Her gaze dropped back down to the apex of Shaw's legs, and blinked when Shaw sat down. Had she just seen that? Did she actually see a bit of wet on Shaw's underwear? Root's arousal kicked into overdrive as she tried to figure out if she had truly seen it or not.

Root sat there, controlling her breathing while Shaw nonchantly dealt the cards. As the flop went down, Root's breath caught as she realized she had four of a kind. _Yes!_

Root had the pleasure of watching Shaw's eyes widen just a bit when she saw the cards Root slid over to her and murmured, "Four of a kind, just imagine that, Sameen…" Shaw sat back in her chair and watched Root's smile grow wider, if that was even possible. Looking very much like a predator that had caught its prey, Root flicked her eyes up and down Shaw before purring, "Show me your legs, Sameen."

Shaw looked confused until the voice continued "Back up your chair so I can get a full view, and spread your legs oh very slowly… so I can drink it all in."

A minute passed before Shaw complied and pushed back the chair roughly. She glared at Root as she started to open her legs, but the glare was lost on Root as her gaze was firmly fixed on the apex of Shaw's legs. Shaw felt her heart beat wilder as this was… she didn't know what this was. She watched Root's eyes go darker as her legs spread wider and both were breathing heavier than normal.

Finally, Shaw's legs were fully open and Root could see visible evidence of Shaw's arousal. Taking a deep breath as this hit her deep in her belly, Root sighed, "Sameen, how nice to see you've taken a liking to me." Shaw, not sure what Root was referring to, looked down and saw the stains of her arousal. Shaw rolled her eyes and retorted "So infantile, Root. I didn't wipe." Root grinned at that remark.

The heavily charged atmosphere lightened up and the next hand was dealt.

Shaw won the hand, secretly breathing a sigh of relief. Mostly everything was going according to plan. Root stood up and shrugged out of her pants. Shaw stared, curious if Root's panties were going to match her lacy black bra. They did. Shaw swallowed as she realized the panties did not exactly cover up everything. Root smirked "And does that please you, Sameen?"

Shaw simply said, "Next hand, Root." This hand saw Shaw lose her bra and Root was heavily distracted. Root even wished for those silly sunglasses she sometimes saw poker players wearing so she could look at Sameen's nipples all she wanted. Oh, those nipples were a work of art and Root itched to get them into her mouth and _lick and suck… _

"Root?"

Root snapped back to attention; her mind had been imaging lovely scenarios regarding Shaw's breasts when she saw Shaw lay her hand on the table. It was a full house.

_Oh shit_, thought Root. _What is she going to do to me?_

A smirk grew on Shaw's face and grew into a wide smile. Root was strangely entranced by the smile, as it was as rare as a leprechaun dancing at the end of a rainbow. _That smile is going to make whatever Shaw wants worthwhile_, decided Root.

"Come here."

Root stood up and hesistantly took a few steps to where Shaw was sitting. She didn't know what Shaw was going to do, and the uncertainity was killing her.

As she stood in front of Shaw, Shaw grasped her hips and moved her so she was standing over Shaw's legs, in an almost-straddling position but she was standing. Root's heart beat wildy _What is she up to?_

"I'm going to taste you."

Fluid started pumping the second that statement hit Root's consciousness. She felt as if she were going to gush a flood, however silly that sounded. She didn't dare move in fear fluid would actually come dripping out, which would be _very_ humiliating.

Shaw's hand moved closer to Root's pussy and Root couldn't breathe as she watched Shaw's index finger gently make circles on her panties. She watched, enthralled, as the finger slowly made its way to the edge of her panties and slid in. Root let out a moan as the finger slid up and down her slick slit and she suddenly wanted more. She wanted to grab Shaw's hand and fuck it to kingdom come. Panting, she met Shaw's eyes and felt even more aroused, if that were possible, as the finger slipped out and Shaw raised it to her lips. Her mouth closed around it and she licked the slick away. Caught up in the moment, Root couldn't look away until Shaw's words broke the moment.

"Next hand, Root."

Gnashing her teeth as she moved back to her chair, Root couldn't understand why Shaw wasn't grabbing her and fucking her senseless. Wasn't this affecting Shaw as much as it was her? Was Shaw playing with her?

Root felt the moment of clarity hit her like a pile of rocks. Of course. Smiling to herself as she regained her inner equilibrium, Root silently praised Shaw for being so clever. She couldn't have done it better herself. Mmm. She raised her eyes at the sound of cards being dealt on the table.

"That's another full house" and Shaw couldn't keep the victory out of her voice as Root stared silently at Shaw's cards, not bothering to show her own.

Root looked wordlessly at Shaw and Shaw said, "I'd like a lap dance, Root. Bring me a beer first, would you?"

Root got up and walked to the fridge to retrieve the beer, and stood nervously near Shaw as she took a long swallow from the bottle. "Well, Root, cat got your tongue?" "Guess so."

Shaw smirked and patted Root's ass. "Get going, girl"

Root straddled Shaw's legs and started moving slowly. Shaw's eyes roved up and down Root's body, most often returning to Root's breasts which had yet to be unveiled. Root's hands snaked up and down her body and teased the top of her bra. Shaw greedily hung onto the view and her breathing hitched as Root teased her nipples enough to get them to stand up to attention under the bra. _God, that was sexy._ Root's hands slowly moved to the front of her bra as she swayed to whatever imaginary music she was playing in her head and Shaw couldn't tear her eyes away when the bra opened, spilling Root's breasts forth. They jiggled as Root swayed and Shaw wanted so badly to touch them. As her hands involuntarily rose up, Root said "Uh-huh. This is a lapdance. No touching." Shaw growled softly and Root turned around, bending lower until her ass was waving in Shaw's face. Shaw watched Root's panties sway and she wanted nothing more than to slide in her finger from behind and fuck Root slowly as she danced. But she wouldn't let Root win by making the first move.

Root turned around again and faced Shaw, her legs grinding on Shaw's. Shaw clenched her fists to her sides so she wouldn't touch Root but her arms slowly rose up and her hands landed on Root's hips. Root was lost in a haze of sexy thoughts, and it showed on her face which was more arousing to Shaw than anything else at that moment. Root's eyes opened and made contact with Shaw's, and neither looked away, Shaw's hands on Root's swaying hips.

"Fuck it, Sameen" and Root lowered her head to kiss Shaw full on the lips. Their lips locked and the pent-up passion of the evening flared up as their tongues rammed each other. What had been gentle was rapidly turning into an inferno and Shaw's hands reached up to roughly squeeze Root's breasts. Shaw pulled Root to her and took her nipple in her mouth, alternately biting down and suckling on it . Root gasped and dragged her teeth on Shaw's neck, leaving welts.

Both were beyond the point of no return and when Shaw lifted up Root's left leg on her shoulder so her mouth could ravage her pussy, Root knew she was almost done for. Her moans became higher and higher until she gasped, "Sameen… lets come at the same time." She heard Shaw moan and felt her slip out of the chair, dragging Root down with her.

Shaw tore off Root's underwear before slipping out of her own, and Root only had a moment to admire those curls _Oh Sameen…_ before Shaw climbed on top of Root and positioned their bodies so their pussies would grind when they rocked their hips. As Shaw's urgently rocking hips drew them closer to the edge, their eyes caught and Root felt she couldn't ask for more from this moment than watching Sameen's eyes go dark as they both finally went over.

Shaw woke up and turned over only to see the other side of the bed empty. So Root had gone, then. _Good_. She didn't want any fluff. It was strictly a fuck. Now that they had it out of their systems, she should be able to go on normally and not get distracted on the job like she had been for the past few weeks.

In the shower, Shaw smiled to herself. Her plan had gone perfectly. She'd known Root would come up with something akin to strip poker—it was in her nature and she couldn't help it. The main goal was getting Root all worked up and making the first move, and she had definitely accomplished that. All in all, it wasn't the worst fuck Shaw had had. _Well, maybe it was better than that… maybe one of the top ten best._

Before heading out, Shaw took one last look around the apartment _Wouldn't do to have one of our intimate items hanging around here, would it?_ and was puzzled to see two cards standing up on the table where they had played the night before. Walking over to the table, she saw that the cards standing up was Root's hand that she hadn't revealed when Shaw had shown her full house and claiming the lap dance.

The cards, with the flop, made up a straight. Root would have won that hand but she had, in essence, folded.

By losing, Root had won. Again.

_Bitch._

The door slammed.

-End of the quid pro quo series-

If you like my work, let me know and maybe I'll write more J


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